Habitat - Indoor :: fish to add to tank?

[fishcube]

Hi, recently got a baby turtle. He's about 2". He's in a 20L aquarium (about 8 gallons is water) with a internal Whisper filter and heater that stays at 78degrees.

Pic of him on the large rock...


Would like to add some kind of fish to his tank. Mainly for inhabitants, preferably not food, but if they have babies, that's fine.

I was thinking guppies, but they may be too small. Mollies (we have softened water, so that would be good for them). Platies, or how about Danios (regular or giant)?

Suggestions? We have many aquariums, including a 370g. We know alot about fish, but are new to turtles.

We would like to combine them. We will eventually move him to a bigger tank once he gets big enough.

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[N4784N R4613]

Sorry to tell you this, but any fish in a turtle's tank, will become lunch eventually. The only fish they won't eat are fish that are big enough, but they could hurt the turtle.

[pumpkinsherbet]

if you don't want your fish to become food, i suggest you put it in a separate tank. if you want to get them to ''socialise" then you can stick the tank next to the turtle tank. but not in the same one. sure, fish can survive a turtle tank (i have a rosie that has gone 3 weeks so far without being touched) but there is no guarantee. small fish are likely to become food quickly, bigger fish will just die a slow painful death.

someone here has a beta tank hanging in her turtle's tank. the turtle can't get to it, so it's safe from becoming lunch.

[fishcube]

Thanks for the info. I guess I'll just try a few fast fish species.

Why would the bigger fish die a slow painful death?

[DavidY]

because your turtle might take chunks out of him every now and then. slow death...

[ice]

yea the day i put my pleco in the tank the turtle took a bite out of him. but he hasnt touched the goldfish in weeks.

best bet is to introduce the fish first, then the turtle. that way he wont think youre just dropping in some lively lunch.

[Freddie011]

I have this one fish in my tank it came from a canal (rain water and it acually is a fish tadpole?)
And my turtle dosent touch it but if i dont feed him reguarly he nips at it when its near so far the fish has been in mt tank for atlest and couple months.

[DavidY]

he he, fish don't have tadpoles. It could be from a frog or a newt. Some tadpoles can take a very long time before they change into an adult. I think it might also depend on food availability, temperatures, water quality or some other factors, I don't quite remember.

[Shadow]

Thanks for the info. I guess I'll just try a few fast fish species.

Why would the bigger fish die a slow painful death?

bcuz smartie the turtle will bite from it and it will kill it slowly but surely and then the turtle will eat it.

[alexis_906]

With my new turtle (less then 2") I have given it some baby guppies and a Pleco. I have seen him nip at the guppies and chase them around and 2 are now missing. He seems to be scared of the Pleco so far but I just got one yesterday and it is a good hider. My older turtle (over 2 years old) has kept 4 rosey red minnows for the past few months and now I have added some guppies to his tank and he hasn't bothered them now either. He also has 2 LARGE snails that he has never bothered, but they will eat any and all plants/veggies. But like everyone has said they do eat most fish and you should be willing to loose anything you put in there. So with that I would stay away from anything expensive. You don't want to throw away money.

[skiingyac]

You could get some snails, your turtle will eat their babies which is good for them and keeps the snail population under control.... Rosy reds are nice & cheap, and pretty dumb... I have a pretty fish-hungry turtle and have had him eat some "non-food" fish in the past... the trick I've found is to have a bunch of decoy fish (rosy reds) that are easy to catch, and make sure the ones you don't want them to eat are faster (I have 2 small Chinese algae eaters that are really skiddish)... just don't let them run out of the easy to catch ones or you're in trouble, unless your turtle doesn't like to eat fish... one of mine isn't interested in them, maybe because he's younger (4" or so).

[ice]

update on my goldfish...he was lunch the other day. but the pleco is still doing ok. hes fast and a good hider.

[Rocky YBS]

the pleco shouldnt realy be threatened but you never know.
fish in a turtle tank is a no, no unless your turt wants to have fun!
and snails are o.k to put in and yes the babies will be eventually be eaten.

[LKitsch]

I have found that chinese algae eaters can last a while because they are so fast. But you are still looking at $2 each, so that's expensive food. Plecos are usually not fast enough to avoid a turtle.

Guppies are good, and feeders are cheap. My experience has been, however, that they breed so quickly that the population begins to explode faster than the turtles can eat them. So I have ended up giving a bunch away every month to my local fish store.

Some stores sell feeder minnows. They will last a while, are nice and pink and don't breed like guppies. My turtles go after any snail, regardless of size---they bite at the shell until they break it.

Be careful with goldfish---first, they are native to cold water, so could develop diseases in the heated turtle tank. Second, they are messy themselves. Third, if they manage to live long enough, they get big---sometimes too big for the turtles to chase, or they get chewed up in pieces by the turtles and make a huge mess in the water.

[Tenodera]

I recently got a male platy and I put it in Serra's tank and she never made any move towards the fish... the fish is smaller than her, but bigger than her head. She had numerous chances where she could take a bite out of him, but she ignores him. It's like she avoids him...lol
I named him Orange Juice, since he's bright orange